1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to mind mapping systems, and, more particularly, to a method for creating and tracking external system data via a mind map.
2. Description of the Background Art
A mind map is a diagram that represents ideas and/or information around a central topic. Mind maps are increasingly used to help people generate, classify, and/or organize ideas and information and to see such ideas and information in a hierarchical, visual layout. Mind maps are made up of hierarchically-arranged “topics.”
There are software programs that enable people to easily create mind maps. Mindjet, Inc.'s Mind Manager software is an example of such software.
One of the most common uses of mind mapping software is in group meetings for planning projects, tasks, processes, etc. FIG. 8 is an example of a mind map that organizes information and ideas related to a website update project. A group may use mind mapping software to organize data related to a project task, or process, and, subsequently, an individual often will manually enter data from the map into a separate project management, requirements management (e.g., Microsoft Visual Studio Team System, Telelogic Doors), workflow management (e.g., CRM systems, Oracle Workflow), and business process modeling software system. As entering data manually into such systems can be tedious, it is desirable to have mind mapping software that can interface with such systems in order to upload data from a mind map to such systems. Moreover, if changes are made to the data in such systems, it is desirable to update the mind map with such changes. This would allow a person managing a project, task, or process to easily track the status of the project, task, or process through the mind map.